Humza Yousaf resigns as Scotland's First Minister following Bute House Agreement fallout

Humza Yousaf has resigned as Scotland’s First Minister.

The SNP leader announced at a press conference at Bute House in Edinburgh that he was to step down from as leader of the country, as well as leader of the party. He came under pressure to vacate the role after the power-sharing Bute House Agreement with the Scottish Greens was terminated on Thursday, April 25.

The partnership between SNP and the Greens broke down after the Greens were angered by the SNP government’s decision to scrap key climate change targets and pause the use of puberty blockers for new patients at the only Scottish gender identity clinic for children. After the Greens said they would vote n the future of the power-sharing agreement, Yousaf terminated the Bute House Agreement “with immediate effect” making the SNP administration a minority government.

In his resignation speech, Yousaf said that he “underestimated” the hurt that terminating the partnership in that way would cause, saying: “Unfortunately in ending the Bute House Agreement in the matter I did I clearly underestimate the level of hurt and upset that caused Green colleagues. For a minority government to be able to govern effectively, trust when working with the opposition is clearly fundamental.”

He added: “After spending the weekend reflecting on what is best for my party, for the government and for the country I lead, I have concluded that repairing our relationship across the political divide can only be done with someone else at the helm. I have therefore informed the SNP’s national secretary of my intention to stand down as party leader and ask that she commences a leadership contest for my replacement as soon as possible.”

After the Greens joined the calls for a vote of no confidence coming from Scottish Conservatives, Scottish Labour and the Scottish Liberal Democrats, Yousaf found himself in a tricky situation, needing at least one opposition MSP to lend him a vote. He also rejected a power-sharing deal offered by former First Minister Alex Salmond’s pro-independence party Alba, putting more pressure on his position.

Yousaf has said that he will continue in the role until a successor. The 39-year-old had held the role at the top of Scottish politics for a little over a year, after he won a party leadership contest to replace former FM Nicola Sturgeon in March 2023.

He paid tribute to his family in the resignation speech, saying: “I am in absolute debt to my wonderful wife, my beautiful children and my wider family for putting up with me over the years. I’m afraid you will be seeing a lot more of me from now. You are truly everything to me.”

Youaf also remarked upon the importance of having culturally diverse leaders, not just in Scotland but across the UK, saying: “People who looked like me were not in positions of political influence, let alone leading governments when I was younger. We now live in a UK that has a British Hindu prime minister, a Muslim mayor of London, a black Welsh first minister and for a little while longer, a Scottish Asian first minister of this country. So for those who decry that multiculturism has failed across the UK, I would suggest that the evidence is quite to the contrary and that is something that we should all celebrate.”

Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie said in a statement following Yousaf’s resignation: “Humza Yousaf is right to resign. His position was no longer tenable after he broke the bonds of trust with the Scottish Greens and with everyone who wanted a stable, progressive, pro-independence government. It is regrettable that it has ended this way, it didn’t need to. We draw no satisfaction or pleasure from this. Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has called for Scottish parliament election following the move. He said: “The SNP are a divided party which is out of ideas and incapable of rising to the challenges Scotland faces. They cannot impose another unelected First Minister on Scotland in a backroom deal, the people of Scotland should decide who leads our country. There must be an election – it’s time for change and Scottish Labour is ready to deliver it.”

Rishi Sunak's official spokesman said: "When the First Minister first came to office he and the PM talked about wanting to work together to focus on the real issue that matter to people. The UK government will work with the new administration to the same end - working together to deliver for people in Scotland, whether it's growing the economy , delivering jobs, enhancing energy security. Most people don't want to be distracted by the ins and outs of politics, they want to see governments working to deliver their priorities."